Report: Partners often at fault in child deaths.. Created by kblakeslee on 4/22/2013 3:38:00 PM

INDIANAPOLIS (AP) _ An annual report on deaths of Indiana children from abuse and neglect shows that many of those killed in 2011 died at the hands of a parent's boyfriend or girlfriend.

The report released Monday by the Department of Child Services found that 25 percent of the 40 deaths reported that year were caused by a parent's ``intimate partner.'' That's lower than in 2010, when more than half of the 25 deaths were caused by a partner.

DCS officials say drug abuse, domestic violence and low incomes contributed to the 2011 totals. Officials say the agency had a prior history with the child killed in only six of the 40 cases.

DCS Director Mary Beth Bonaventura says state officials need to learn from the report and do a better job.